Classified Terminal
by TexTau
Summary: I know how to take care of myself in the big city. However, no-one's perfect. My imperfection seems to be my love of hacking, and I just happened to unintentionally see some classified data. Hah! Alien robots? To make things more interesting, I'm kidnapped by a little blue Volt, and brought somewhere I hoped I'd never see again.
1. Prologue

**Author's Notes:**

_I'm extraordinarily psyched. This is, frankly, my first fanfiction, and the plot bunny came like dust on the wind, so any comments whatsoever are appreciated. Constructive criticism will be used to build s'more chapters, and flaming to heat 'em. ( Apologies for the ridiculous pun, my mind goes down the gutter at one in the morning. )_

_I had a strange dream back in August, about half a year after I entered the fandom. This - this thing - was born. If the story or summary so far appeals too generic, please notify me and I will be happy to fix it. I am more willing to tear apart the fanfiction chapter by chapter, paragraph by paragraph, as opposed to letting it sit and rot. No one wants to read another one of those. I also apologize if I sound cheesy at all. I'm just running on a sleep-deprived telencephalon._

_And with that, enjoy._

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**Disclaimer:**  
_"Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use."_

_I do claim title to my own original characters (OC's), which are only to be reproduced under written confirmation, unless I state otherwise._

_I do not own Transformers, any of its sub-products, characters, plots, or any other feature, and have written this only to induce enjoyment for readers and writers alike._

_I referenced a line and a name from __**DaemonicKitten**__'s story, "Two Times Two," and would like to credit her for eliciting such to light. The one about the phone and the porn emporium - I think I died twice reading that. I encourage you to go check our her stories! "Her Twins," "Two Times Two," and "The Sexual Harassment Course" are my personal favorites._

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**Summary: **  
"I've grown up by myself in Seattle: I know how to take care of myself in the big city. However, no-one's perfect. My imperfection seems to be my love of hacking, and I just happened to unintentionally see some classified data. Hah! Alien robots? Well, let's just say, it's not too hard to believe after I get a strange message on my computer written in a language I've never seen before. To make things worse, I'm kidnapped by a little blue Volt, and brought somewhere I hoped I'd never see again."

**Fandom:** Transformers

**Rating:** T (subject to change)

**Universe:** Bayverse / AU

**Grouping:** Reality / Action / "I'll Be There"

**Shippings:** (none so far)

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**Legend:**  
"Normal"  
_Thoughts_  
_"Phone"_  
**"Cybertronian"**  
**{ Communications Link }**  
_Telepathic_  
'_Twin Bond_'  
**Text Message / Citation / Lyrics**  
**( POV / Scene Change )**  
**( Flash-Back )**

* * *

**( Narration POV )**

You probably don't know me, and if you do - it's probably because I've either hacked you, or turned you in to the local police. Yeah, _that_ girl.

My designation is Alex Naas. I'm going on seventeen, currently reside in a tiny apartment down by Pike Place - and don't have too much to tell you about myself. I'm a traceuse and a hacker, so naturally, I'm hooked on anything that involves action or trouble. I've grown up in the big city all my life, and it hasn't been very exciting so far, but I can assure you, if you go looking for trouble in Seattle, it isn't too hard to find.

Trouble. _Hah_. My middle name.

I may not have much to tell you about myself, but I have a hell of a story to tell you. And it starts right here, in the city of Seattle. So, grab your coke and Oreos and hear me out.

**( Alex Naas POV )**

"So, what's he like?"

That voice was going to be the end of me: high-pitched with a mocking sing-song tone, and coming from the very mouth of the devil's daughter. Tiffany Dilbern.

Okay, not _really_. I love Tiffany - she's like a sister-from-another-mister. When her father was sent to prison, courtesy of yours truly, I was surprised that she thanked me and took a liking to me.

Turns out, her father had done a lot more than given government secrets to North Korea. He, being the drunkard he was, had killed his wife, and beaten his only daughter. So now, she was with me, and I loved the company.

_Correction_: most of the time.

I quickly dropped my pencil and turned towards her, brow raised curiously. "Who?"

"That cute guy that wanted you to hack that site - called - oh, what was it, GiantEffingRobots?" she mused, feet waving back and forth behind her to match her enthusiasm. "His profile picture was fucking sexy."

I couldn't hold back my amusement at her remark, swinging my torso in her direction and leaning forward with a sputtering laugh. "Yeah, yeah, more like a hot mess. You think that's what he really looks like?" When she nodded, I threw my head back in a mock laugh, pivoting to my keyboard and bringing up the email once again. "That was not him."

"How do you know?" she sneered, a tinge of tease cupping her tone. "Okay, that was a stupid question, but - it means you're interested in him!" I heard my bed squeak as she rose to her feet, padding across the floor to my location and looking over my shoulder.

"_Was_," I corrected, "I _was_ interested in him." Eliciting several photos from the CMD, I leaned back in my chair, allowing her to view the young man. "_That_, is my client. Not the profile picture."

With a sigh, Tiffany rolled on her heels, falling back onto the bed with a sickening squeak of the springs. "Point taken."

"Jesus, woman, don't murder my innocent bed!" I sniggered, coughing to shrug off the amusement in my voice. "What is it to you anyways? I'm never getting a guy."

"Don't say that. You saw how those other guys -"

"Looked at me for my body. I'm a hacker!" I exclaimed loudly, slamming my fists on the keyboard for emphasis. "Not a sex-toy."

Tiffany sat up, holding her hands above her chest in mock surrender. "What about that cute FedEx guy? You do realize he was obviously interested in you. He smiled whenever he passed, and he started visiting the office, even when he didn't have packages."

I turned rather cinematically, eyes narrowed coldly. "I'm never getting a guy," I laughed, brushing a curl back with a digit. "Even if they were sincere, I'm not that kind of person." Snatching the water bottle from the table, I began to down it, shrugging her off for the time being.

"Whatever, Robo," she continued, giving me a wry grin and clicking her tongue with a 'tsk tsk tsk'. "I'm just saying, life is better with a guy. Don't you want kids?"

Miraculously, I spewed my water away from the keyboard, and onto my victim with a terrifying laugh. Setting the bottle down, I proclaimed, "Screw me sideways, I'm never having kids. They're friggin' monsters! They scream, eat, poop, sleep, and did I mention scream?" I checked them off on my fingers. "All your life's savings -" I exaggerated, throwing my hands together in a little ball, "- gone!" Throwing my hands out dramatically with a 'poof' noise for sound effects, I twisted my right hand into a gun and pointed it at Tiff, who promptly fell backwards with a sigh of defeat.

"I get it, I get it," she snickered, kicking my chair lightly.

Shaking my head with a snort of disbelief, I whirled back to the computer, looking over the email from my most recent client and opening up RoboWarrior's page. "Damn, this guys got some pretty kick-ass stuff on his site," I muttered. "Not for long…" Robots, explosions, conspiracies about aliens trying to take over Earth. These things were _beast_ - whoever animated did a hell of a realistic job. "Whoa! Look at this shit!" I cackled maniacally. Oh boy, this would be fun to keep for myself and erase off the site to show this RoboWarrior guy who my client was messing with.

Whilst I had my nose buried in trying to override the firewalls, the phone rang, Tiffany pinioning it quickly and holding it to her ear. "Hello? This is Alex Naas' Porn Emporium. Could I interest you in a free sex show on your front lawn?"

My eyes widened, and I immediately forgot about the site, practically flying from my chair to remove the phone from her demonic grip with a growl. She released almost involuntarily, falling back with howls of laughter as I answered curtly; "I'm so damn sorry," I muttered, expecting profanity or some kind of yelling to incur from the other end. "Bitch," I mouthed with a whisper, shrugging off the other teenager and averting my attention to whoever was deemed important. "This is Alex Naas, can I help you?"

_"You'z dat hacker dey keep talkin' 'bout, right?"_ an unfamiliar voice chipped. Wow, way to shrug off a porn advertisement so suddenly. And who were 'they'? I wasn't supposed to be well known.

Ignoring his botched grammar, I muttered suspiciously, "Why do you inquire?"

_"I'z gots a task for ya, chickie."_ He paused when I snorted._ "You take cretz?"_

"Yes." By this time, Tiffany had stopped laughing, and was now facing my direction rather intently, hand on her mouth. I walked to the window, leaning against the sill and staring out onto the busy street below. "What 'task'?"

_"So, you'z iz up for da task?"_ That almost sounded like a challenge.

"Hell yeah, sir," I replied curtly.

_"Good. Can you'z meet 'n person?"_

"No, I don't do face-to-face. My apologies." I rolled my eyes briefly, brushing the hair from my face once again. If someone bothered to call me without reading my information, the service couldn't mean much. "I might consider it, however, if you tell me how much you're offering."

_"Ten grand, brah. Cretz."_

Holy shit. This guy meant business.

My hand slipped on the sill, and I slid forward, nearly dropping the phone in the process. It was too good - to be true. "Name," I coughed, "sir?"

_"She azked uz our name!"_ Did he have a twin? I blinked, listening to the voice in the background curiously.

_"Shut up, you moron!"_

_"I ain't no moron, you'z da moron!"_

_"Shaddup!"_ the original snapped quickly, and a loud clang resounded through the room, before silence once again. _"Sk- Skoota Mudda."_

I slapped a hand on my mouth, failing to conceal my laughter as it peeled across the room. Tiffany waggled her eyebrows, and I shot her a dirty look, before shuddering. "I'm so - sorry - sir -"

_"Let me handle this, you dumb-afts,"_ a gruff voice interrupted, and I cringed slightly, holding my breath as an older-sounding male took the phone. _"Apologies, Miss Naas. I am Richard Wrenchit."_

"How may I help you?" I repeated, chocking on my breath at the mention of his name.

_"We require your - _services_."_ Silence. Wow, this guy obviously didn't like talking much.

I shifted the phone to another ear, raising a brow at the caution in his tone. "Can you please specify?" Holding the phone between my ear and my shoulder, I sat back down, chair squealing in protest. Digits flew across the keyboard as I brought up a new page, waiting for his answer and contemplating tracing his call.

_"Excuse me for a moment."_

"Acknowledged," I murmured, mind far from the subject as I began feeding the CMD commands. "Spokane," I whispered involuntarily, and accidentally catching the attention of the caller.

_"What did you say?"_

"N-Nothing," I stuttered, shaking my head slightly and transferring the phone back to my hand. "What do you require?"

_"Did you buy an expensive necklace off of eBay a few days ago?"_

"I beg your pardon?" I leaned forward and shoved the chair back a tad to stand up again. "What does it matter?" My eyes narrowed. None of this was relevant. "Who the hell are you? Are you with the government?"

The line went quiet, before a crackling signaled the man had hung up.

"What did they want?" Tiffany inquired curiously, cocking her head to one side with a tempest excitement filling her gaze. It soon faded to worry when I threw the phone on the floor with a loud _clang_.

"Some guy was asking about the necklace I bought a few days ago. Maybe he was the original owner wanting his stuff back? I don't give a shit." Striding over to her, I fell flat on my face, grumbling into the sheets. "The first guy offered me too many credits to be true. I should've hung up then."

"Hon, get your face out of the bedspread and tell me what's wrong," Tiffany murmured softly, rolling me over and pushing me into a sitting posture. "How many credits did he offer?"

"Doesn't matter," I chuckled grimly, glancing out the window and then back to the phone. "They were calling from Spokane. I usually don't get calls from anywhere else but here."

"And yet, your newest client is from LA."

"Something feels - off." I shrugged, averting my gaze back to the window. Snorting, I concluded, "When life gives you rotten lemons, you squish them up your enemy's ass."

Tiffany sputtered indifferently, gaze softened by now. We both had our moments, and she was particularly soft when it came to situations such as these. "Cheer up. I'll be right back, gonna go grab some chow." By chow, she obviously meant cookies and coke. As she left the room, I was concealed in a shrouding silence yet again, slowly moving over to the computer to check my emails one last time.

Sure enough, a new email. Eagerly scooting my chair forward and leaning in, I clicked the message - and forced myself to preform a double-take. "Soundwave." There was no source, no address, just the word '_Soundwave_' written on the topic. Was it a virus? I scrolled down a tad, and looked at the screen.

The message was blank. Quickly, I pulled open the source-code, squinting and almost throwing a fit as unknown symbols crammed the small space intended for HTML. Involuntarily, my hand moved over my necklace, grabbing at it tightly.

_ Open your eyes. _

The moment that little voice entered my head, my jaw hung agape, muttering syllables faster than any human should, head thrown back and craned uncomfortably with breathing shallow. My eyes were open to their extent, quickly going from cleared to bloodshot, fingers twitching across the keyboard and entering uncontrollable chains of letters and numbers. All I could see was the ceiling, and the darkness that threatened to swallow me whole.

"T-T-T-Tiff-f -" I found myself unable to finish my sentence, a terrifying jolt of energy stripping my spine of feeling and sending me to the floor, convulsing violently. If anyone had been watching at the time, I may have appeared to be a human pretzel, my muscles refusing to move as I lay, frozen in fear and paralysis.

Before I could protest, although there wouldn't be much I could've done regardless, my eyes rolled back, body slumping into a heap on the floor as the warm darkness welcomed me into its clutches.

**( Normal POV )**

Tiffany quickly moved through the dark hall, flipping on the lights to the kitchen and shuffling to the fridge.

"Where are you, you little shit," she muttered, forcing her hand into the fridge and searching blindly for an aluminum can. "Aha." Drawing it out, she knocked over the milk carton, which quickly toppled onto her foot. "Fuck!" The can was released in turn, hitting the ground with a hiss that threatened to send pop all over her face. "Ohh, you -" Staggering backwards into a chair, she laughed monotonously. "I'm talking to a fridge."

A thump startled the teen, and she glanced in the direction of the hallway leading to Alex's room. "Alex?" No response. Rubbing her foot, she slowly rose, leaning against the counter for security and looking down the hall.

The lights flickered ominously, and she dared venture further. "Alex?" she repeated, quickening her pace and stopping cold at the doorway. "Shit!" Sliding to her knees, she grabbed the phone, quickly dialing 911 and waiting for someone to answer.

"This -"

Tiffany didn't even wait for them to answer, pleading, "Please! I just found my - sister passed out on the floor. I think she may have been electrocuted."

"What is your location, ma'am?"

Quickly spewing the details, the operator acknowledged and reassured her that assistance would arrive soon.

Tiffany hung up, scooting closer to Alex but not daring to touch her stilled body. She was still breathing. That was a good sign.

Little did she see, for alien transcript was flying across Alex's computer screen, along with pictures of mass destruction in downtown LA, and finally, a black screen with two looming, crimson slits on it. The computer snarled in protest, before sparking, and leaving a completely blank screen.

The sound of sirens filled the room, the blonde girl snapping her head up and scrambling to get the door. Two paramedics, one middle-aged, one a tad younger looking, rushed into the apartment, where Tiffany directed them to Alex's location.

"Alex.. please be alright," she whispered, standing back as worked.

**( Unknown POV )**

In Earth's orbit, the sun cast a shaft of light to glint off a foreign object, which had since moved in and taken residence beside a US satellite.

This foreign object was no space debris.

The female had one of the Shards, and the other known one was locked under human protection.

He knew it would be easy to squash the insects and show them power, but to steal it from a simple girl - that would be much easier. One simple human couldn't put up a fight against a superior being. It would be more efficient - faster.

Yes. That would please his Master.

**{ Decepticons: we have located the Shard. }**

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**Author's Notes:**

_Regarding the story so far, the badass Cybertronians won't be truly coming in until the next chapter, which I will - hopefully - get around to posting by next Wednesday, if this proves at all successful._

_I apologize if the story seems rushed, eh. Didn't want to make it seem that way, and I'll edit if I need to, but I couldn't resist slipping in a wee bit of action in the first chapter. And, sorry if anything seems 'out of character', since I can already assume you know who was on the other end of the line._

_Also, please take note, I've always been really nervous when posting material, and I'm not sure if that's just the good ol' Hacker Senses kicking in or if I'm just paranoid. Probably the latter. So, overall, any review is appreciated! If the characters seem Mary-Sue, or something seems really bad, tell me, please. If my head is in the clouds, hit me with a wrench or something. Questions, comments, reviews - it's all appreciated!_

_Love from yours truly,  
__**TexTau**__._


	2. Chapter One - Give Me Five

**Author's Notes:**

_A sincere and humble shout-out of thank-you to those who have reviewed, favorited, and followed this story thus far. I enjoyed reading through the reviews, and received much incentive through the elicited enjoyment detailed in each, along with the positive words of advice and critique. It is greatly appreciated! _

_I probably wouldn't be writing this with so much confidence without you guys, and I do hope this chapter meets or goes above the standards and expectations readers may have hoped for. _

_Apologies the chapter arrived later than expected - I accidentally rearranged the file and messed up on one scene, and had to quickly change it. Also, the next chapter should make it between next Wednesday / Friday, depending on the amount of studies I'm stacked with. I'm hoping to update every Wednesday or so, from now on, unless suggested otherwise. MLA reports and SAT's wait for no-one._

_Hope you enjoy!_

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**Disclaimer:**

_I do claim title to my own original characters (OC's), which are only to be reproduced under written confirmation, unless I state otherwise._

_I do not own Transformers, any of its sub-products, characters, plots, or any other feature, and have written this only to induce enjoyment for readers and writers alike._

* * *

**Legend:**

"Normal"  
_Thoughts_  
_"Phone"_  
**_"Cybertronian [ Vocal ]"_**  
**{ Communications Link }**  
**Text Message / Citation / Lyrics**  
**( POV / Scene Change / Location )  
( ****Flash-Back**** )**

* * *

**Chapter I** - **Give Me Five**

* * *

**( Alex POV )**  
**( Two days later, unknown hospital, Seattle, Washington )**

_The thoughts were blank, dreams completely black, the planes stretching out into infinity and blending with the sky like smudged pencil marks. It was eerily silent, and when I turned my head to look around further, a white blip on the alleged ground stood before me. I approached, but the closer I stepped, the further away it seemed to grow, confusing me further, before an earth-shaking noise averted my attention._

_It sounded almost like water racing to fill a gorge, getting louder and louder as it approached, before it was all cut off sharply by voices that threatened to swallow my subconscious._

"Alex!"

Popping my eyes open, followed promptly by several blinks, the first thing I saw was Tiffany - and then a nurse and a bland ceiling.

"You look like shit," I muttered sleepily, closing my eyes as I spoke for the mere beauty of it.

"Good morning to you, too, _Sunshine_," Tiffany retorted quickly, before inviting herself to plop down onto the side of the bed by my feet, whilst be scowled down by the nurse adjusting some things off to the side. "It's about time you woke up."

The realization of the moment dawned upon me. Snapping my eyes back open, they wandered the room curiously, before I arced a brow and turned back to Tiff. "How long was I out?"

"Two days." Her reply seemed rather curt, as though I had missed something during my absence of consciousness. I opened my mouth to question her further, but she knew me well enough to finish my thoughts for me; "You got electrocuted by the computer. Did you spill the water on the keyboard?"

_Did I spi-_

No, I wasn't that sloppy. Nor that clumsy. Although, at the moment, it had to be considered a possibility. "Acknowledged."

"So, what happened in there, anyways?" Her tone seemed distant, and hesitant, as though something really was wrong.

"I was looking through my emails -" Seeing the nurse watching the two of us closely, I cut myself off, giving her the cold shoulder before leaning in to whisper in Tiffany's ear. "I saw an email entitled '_Soundwave_', with no message in the text box. When I inspected the source code, the whole friggin' HTML was screwed up with a foreign language."

With her immediate giggle, I drew back, blinking in surprise. "So then, if you didn't spill water, how _did_ you shock yourself?" That was - irrelevant but amusing. My face always gave away my expressions and thoughts. It was a damn curse, and a blessing all the same. I must've made a rather begrudged expression, because that's the only reason she would've asked.

"I have no idea, and I don't want to dwell on it," I yawned musingly, shaking my head slightly and rubbing at the dryness in my left eye. It was almost habit by now, as I reached up for the sliver of metal around my neck - before I realized it was gone. I looked down, and then shifted to look under the stiff covers, growling. "Do you know where the necklace went?"

Despite the fact I wasn't talking to her, the nurse merely shook her head, Tiffany mimicking promptly to show her mutual confusion. "I wouldn't worry too much," Tiffany murmured, standing up and reaching up to stretch out her back with a pop. "We can always buy another one."

"'_Buy another one_'?" I tested with a stifled laugh, furrowing my brows at the very idea. No, the original would always be my favorite. And with that, did we even know if there were any more being sold? "That sentence has some pretty screwed-up grammar. Mind explaining the concept to me?"

She snorted in reply, rolling her eyes with a smile and beginning to wander towards the window. "How are you feeling?" Complete change of subject, but I couldn't read the emotions leading to it, tilting my head to the side ever-so-slightly.

"Like a friggin' transformer fell from a power-pole and crushed me." When she shot me a confused, but worried glance, I shook my head, smiling as I finished; "Nah, I'm fine. Are you asking because we can go..?" With the last few words, I dragged my attention to the nurse tidying files and checking the monitors across the tiny room.

The nurse seemed to read my mind, nodding stiffly and leaving the room with a simple, "I'll be right back. Stay put."

_… Once we were finally on our way out of the building - after some simple, but brain-tiring interrogations, and assertions that I was fine - we started to chat about what had happened. …_

Upon exiting the building, I shivered as the cold air whipped at my face and arms, smiling sweetly and pausing to take in the fresh atmosphere. "So much better than a stuffy building," I drawled briefly, tugging my pants up onto my waist a tad more and adjusting the camisole as Tiffany opened the floodgate of questions.

"Do you know what the - _uh_." Pausing and running a hand through her hair, she shot me a guilty and rather saddened look.

"Hypertext markup language," I teased, receiving a playful slap across the arm.

"Yeah. Do you know what it said?"

"No." I rubbed at my nose, trying to hold back the yawn that pressed offensively at the back of my maw. "Like I said before, it was in another language."

"What kind of language?"

"I - honestly, I don't know any other vernacular well enough to guess accurately. It was very scribbled and jumbled."

"Do you remember any of the 'letters'?" she inquired, brow raised as we made it to the car. We both pulled open the doors, sat down, and buckled at the same time, eliciting a smirk from her and a stifled laugh from myself.

I nodded as I closed the door, opening the glovebox to nab a paper and a pencil. The only 'papers' in there at the moment were napkins, but it was something clean to write on, nonetheless. Pinioning it to the dashboard, I began scribbling out the few I could remember - the best I could. I didn't care much for the turnout, but it was good enough for Tiff to nod stiffly and start up the car.

"Speaking of which, is my computer okay?" I drew up quickly, crumbling up the napkin and dropping it into the cup-holder.

"I'm not sure - no-one ever really checked. When you weren't showing any signs of waking up, they brought you in, and I followed without a second thought." She shrugged, looking over her shoulder and drawing out into the parking lot. "The keyboard is probably shit, but I'm sure the tower and monitor are fine."

I nodded, cozying myself between the side of the seat and the window, the side of my face against the glass and eyes flicking to and fro as the shapes began to blur upon entering the highway.

It was rather amusing, and concerning, as we were both silent for the entire drive back. Time seemed to spit in our faces.

I finally had to ask. As soon as we stepped out of the car, I inquired thoughtfully, "Are you okay?"

"I was so _fucking_ worried about you," she announced lightly, leaning against the car door with a frown. "I was just thinking." She shook her head to shrug it off. "I'm glad to have you back. Can't have a head without a tail." Ah, there we go, back to the regular, ridiculous metaphors. 'Sister from another mister', she used to proclaim. She was smiling once again, which just made me snicker.

"I'm sorry for _electrocuting_ myself," I cut clearly, using my fingers to quote, before closing the car door and walking around the hood to meet her. Before I could say anything, she grabbed me and pulled me into a tight embrace, which made me blink in confusion before I returned the hug.

"Seriously, don't ever do anything like that again." Her tone was serious and broad, but sarcastic on the last few words. Well, it meant she knew me well enough. Releasing her grip and adjusting the leather jacket she was wearing, she nodded with a smirk.

"I promise," I chuckled, closing the driver's side and making my way to the porch.

"Hey, do you think the Whites would let us store the car in their garage? I hear it's gonna storm pretty badass tonight."

I paused halfway up the stairs, shrugging as I looked over the railing to stare at the little Subaru Impreza. "A little rain couldn't hurt." I knew how protective she was of the car, especially since it sapped the money from us when we had bought it, so I knew what to expect.

"What if some power-pole or tree falls on it? Or -"

"Okay, how about I drive it to the Madison parking garage later this evening?" I offered quickly, before the escapade could grow any larger or faster.

"How are you gonna get back?"

"I'll walk," I snickered, making my way up to the top of the small flight and searching for the right key on the chain.

"I'm going with you," she began quickly, "it gets really boring in that tiny apartment really fast. What about shopping?"

That was one thing that we were discordant about. I despised shopping, and Tiffany loved it, and constantly prevailed to drag me along on many of her sprees.

Feeling it was the least I could do to calm her nerves and make up for my stupidity, I nodded stiffly. "Sure." Making my way to the door, I finally located the key, reaching up to grab the doorknob when I realized there was no knob. In fact, there was no door. Quickly, I inhaled sharply, staggering back until the door was out of sight and my back was pressed against the railing. "_Shit_! Tiffany!" I kept my voice within a pathetic mix between a hiss and a yelled whisper, as some may describe, watching as she paused on the stairwell and immediately looked to me.

"What?" Turning the corner, I grabbed her arm to keep her from going any further, looking around the balcony for anything I could use as a weapon.

If someone broke in, it would go one of two ways: I was in deep doo-doo, or they were. Releasing her arm and dropping the keys into her hand, I grabbed the neighbor's large flowerpot, hoisting it to near chest-level and nearing the door meticulously.

I was torn between yelling '_Hello_' or staying quiet. If my assailant had a gun, he would probably just hide and shoot me upon entry. Or, if I stayed quiet and startled him, he would shoot me then. Of course, a girl with a giant flowerpot would probably just make someone break out into laughter before they pulled the trigger, it was so pathetic.

Conclusively, I wandered in, signaling for Tiffany to follow close with a brief wave of my free hand. When I felt her near, I strode into the kitchen area - nothing. The dining room was next, and I was rather fearful by this point, as the labyrinth of halls beyond would be an easy place to slip-up. Still nothing. Crossing over into the corridors, I kept my back to the wall, backing into my own room and swinging around quickly to make sure no-one occupied it. The moment I swung, however, glass broke beneath my footsteps, and when I looked up, I realized the skylight was broken.

"Looks like it was a smash-and-grab," Tiffany commented, nudging my shoulder and jerking a finger pointedly towards the computer desk. I set down the flowerpot, before running to inspect the damage.

The tower was laying on its side, panel ripped of, cords torn to shreds and sparking dangerously, whilst the monitor and keyboard remained untouched. However, upon closer scrutinizing, it came to my realization that all four of my RAM's were missing, and I blinked.

Tiffany, still lingering protectively by the door, questioned, "How much damage did they cause?"

"The random-access memory units are all missing," I growled, standing up and kicking the lifeless shell of the ruined tower. "There was nothing special on my computer."

"How can you say that? What about that hacker stuff, like the information you gathered from your clients and all that jazz?"

"Yeah, but it wasn't really that important to anyone but myself. And who would've even known this was where I lived, or what information was on the hard-drive?" Slamming a fist on the desk, I glanced up, narrowing my eyes at the water bottle perched atop the scratched wood, untouched and with the cap on. "I wasn't electrocuted by the computer."

"What?"

"Look, the water is still there." I tilted my head towards the bottle to prove my point.

"It could've malfunctioned -"

"I'm calling the cops," I cut her off quickly, standing up and walking past her to the dining room.

"What if someone's still in here?"

"If they worked so hard to get the RAM's, they would've left by now," I murmured, grabbing the phone and dialing 9-1-1, waiting patiently for them to respond. Once I had requested the police department and explained the details, I went back to my room, salvaging a few, 'personal' belongings that I didn't want some crazed officers digging through upon entry. Of course, they probably would object, but what they didn't know couldn't hurt them.

Tiffany alerted me of his, singular, presence, and I meandered towards the front - doorway, stepping back to allow the officer entry.

"Sam Tyson," he introduced, offering a blatant countenance. His expression seemed rather cold, but I shrugged it off. Officers couldn't be friends with everyone, I suppose.

"Alex Naas," I replied with equal blunt, raising a brow.

"Can you tell me exactly what happened?"

Oh hell yes, Sir.

I started from the beginning, explaining in the best detail I could manage and guiding him to the scene.

**( Normal POV )  
( Apartment, Seattle, Washington )**

A small RC truck crossed the pavement, wheels screaming as it picked up the pace upon a car's approach.

**_"Bingo."_** The voice was spat, almost mockingly, as the toy zipped through the neatly-trimmed grass and towards the apartment complex. It made a wide semi-circle around the Subaru, huffing indignantly and adjusting the small side-mirrors to ensure no-one was around.

Parts shifting and bending up and around, the small truck soon stood about a foot-and-a-half tall, a mini humanoid cybernetic with red eyes that would send any HotWheels collector into a fit. Growling, it began clambering up the slight of stairs, quickly turning back into an RC truck once it reached the balcony, nearing the door almost hesitantly.

**_"Damn it,"_** it hissed indignantly, spotting the two females chatting with the large male. The blonde seemed to notice him, but merely scowled at him in utter confusion, before turning her attention back to the officer. **_"You sure are hot, but you ain't too bright,"_** he muttered to himself in regard of the blonde, quickly driving to the end of the balcony and transforming. Hauling himself first to the chair, he managed to slide up onto the railing, then to the hanging flowerpot, where he met his match. Snarling, he clicked in a foreign vernacular, under great thought as he searched the area for some kind of tool.

_Aha!_

Clambering onto the porch's rafter, he made his way towards the apartment roof, bending under the gutter and hoisting the lower half of his body onto the slick tiles. Glancing around, he spotted what he had been told to look for - a broken skylight. Zipping up and over the bumpy roofing, he looked around inside, scanning the room but finding no traces of the object of interest.

He knew he couldn't go in, or else he'd have no way of getting back out without being seen… Maybe there was another window he could use where he wouldn't fall to a painful doom.

Slipping down until he was hanging onto the broken glass, he looked over his shoulder, releasing his grip and bracing himself as he hit the side edge of the bed directly below, before bouncing up into the air and tumbling down upon the broken glass. Wincing at the noise it made, he waited for someone to come storming in, but nothing else happened, causing him to smirk proudly.

Hastily, he checked the hallway, before rolling from room to room in his alternate mode, searching for any traces of radiation or sign of the Shard. The living room contained nothing, and he barely made it out unseen, taking the foresight to use the overturned coffee table as a hiding place while the police moved about.

Racing through the hallway undetected, he slid into what he assumed was the blonde girl's room, judging by the photos on the wall.

Still nothing.

Once he had reached the last room in the hallway, he growled, before switching to his humanoid form and climbing over the tub and onto the windowsill to look for the lock. After grabbing the lock and turning it loose, he pushed with all his might, shoving the obstinate window up and kicking it for good measure, before looking around for something other than the ground to land on.

A tree. A very tiny tree, but a tree nonetheless.

**{ I found the girlie, but I can't find the Shard. }**

**{ Soundwave acknowledges. Continue pursuit. }**

**{ Right. Wheelie out. }**

Footsteps approached from inside, and without another moment of precaution, he leapt from the window, grabbing onto the branch and letting it bend him closer to the ground before he truly dropped. And hit the ground hard.

Luckily it was grass, but he paid little heed, shifting back into an RC truck and racing along the grass to wait for the females in the driveway.

**( Alex POV )  
( Apartment, Seattle, Washington )**

The officer, after a bit of interrogation, had told us to go wander for a bit while the apartment was investigated further.

Tiffany wanted to take the car, due to the coming storm, but I wanted to walk. I felt groggy, and tired, and needed to wake my body up a bit. I told Tiffany to man-up a bit, and I received a playful slap for my remark, but she didn't argue any further.

I groaned happily, sinking my feet into the soft grass and wriggling my toes around in pleasure. I hadn't been truly outside for what felt like ages.

"That grass giving your feet an orgy or something?" Tiffany clipped musingly, immediately ruining my moment.

"No," I replied curtly, yawning again as we walked along. She continued walking in the sidewalk, while I treaded unheedingly on our neighbors' lawns. They wouldn't care, unless it was one of the environmentalist freaks from Madison Park. I definitely made sure to stay off their lawn. They threatened me with a shotgun the last encounter we had. "Remember George Terryson?" I brought up quickly, making Tiffany burst into a fit of laughter.

"Hell yeah. When you spilled your books on his lawn, and then stepped on it when you were trying to help. I didn't know he _wasn't_ a pacifist until then," she teased. "I feel bad for him, and at the same time, I am amused and horrified all in one. How he wears that safari hat around everywhere like we live in _Clan Seattle_ or something."

George - George was an interesting man. He held strong values, and I respected that, but his obsession with plants and logic was rather… interesting, at the least. Sometimes, we teased him about that, but we usually regretted it.

Yeah, we thought he was a pacifist, but then he wielded a shotgun when I stepped on his precious lawn.

Tiffany and I had always had a tense relationship with him, but his wife, Pam, loved us. She baked us cookies every Christmas and gave them to us in secrecy. What George didn't know couldn't hurt him.

On a less relevant note, their bodies were complete opposites, which made it rather cute. Pam was short, a little plump, with curly hair, constantly wearing a pink apron and wielding a frying pan, while George was tall, skinny, and - constantly wearing a safari hat and carrying a shotgun.

Their adopted son, Jake, never spoke to us, or even really saw us for that matter. Of course, I was only in the public high school for one year before I switched to homeschooling for the leisure and self-efficiency of the whole thing. But I had to say, out of any of the others I had met at school, or anywhere for that matter, he had to be the cutest and sweetest. He wasn't a - no offense, George - freak, but he didn't talk like Pam either.

He was just right.

From all the times I remember seeing him, he blended with the crowds easily, but remained completely silent the whole time. He always smiled when he passed others, including myself, and followed the rules. There was one occasion, where some of the traceurs and traceuses, including Tiffany and myself, gathered downtown for a little 'Tease the Crowd' day.

_Damn_, he was a _prankster_. We like to move along the rooftops down by Pike Place whenever we host said rendezvous, and so then the action came. We moved through the city like there was no tomorrow, showing off to the crowd by slipping in some free-running here and there. Jake was assigned to be my partner that day, and I think Tiffany was jealous, but I didn't blame her. She was still happy she got Connor Terrace - weird but cool last name, right? Connor was a nice kid, too, but nothing like Jake.

Oh wait am I saying? He's the only guy that would ever have a shot at me, but as if he'd even look at me with a smile that was different than the ones forked out to the others. No, I'd be just fine solo -

A hand smacked me across the face, followed by a whirred chirp of, "Dude, watch where you're stepping!" Tiffany drew back, and I blinked looking down and realizing she had stopped me a few feet from the Terryson's grass. "Get your head out of Uranus and back to Earth." She sounded sarcastic, but I could tell she was worried, merely smirking and avoiding the grass as I stepped onto the cool pavement. When I glanced back to the house, I saw Jake watching us from the living room window, almost laughing as he quickly spun around to his own business.

Before I could relish it further, I checked my watch, scrunching up my face at the time. We had only wasted about an hour. It was then, to my own surprise, that a police car approached, the driver nodding with a smile as he pulled over to us, averting my attention immediately.

"Hey, name's Jesse Thompson. The other squad members informed me you two were wandering while they cleared the place. Need a lift anywhere?"

I ran a hand through my ruffled hair. "Oh, we -"

"That would be great, thank you." I scowled as I was immediately cut off by a dreamy Tiffany, scorning her down briefly before turning my attention to the car. "We were on our way to the Hot Iron." Since we didn't want to squeeze the two of us in the front, we sat down in the back, where I went back to looking through my knapsack while Tiffany bored the poor man with irrelevant facts and stories.

"Looking for something in particular?" he inquired, breaking Tiffany's chain of comments on God-knew-what.

Looking up, I shrugged; "I bought a necklace off eBay several days ago, and lost it in the past two. It was really pretty. A little shard of soft, grey metal covered in hieroglyphics - apparently recovered from the terrorist attack in L.A. from a couple years back."

Could seats tense? Maybe he had a switch or something.

His expression hardened, and he glanced at me from the rear-view mirror with an arced brow, before going back to the matter at hand. "Interesting. I wish you luck in recovering it." His tone was no different, but his countenance told me otherwise.

I narrowed my eyes and continued to search through my knapsack, before Tiffany quickly pointed out, "Uhh, you were supposed to turn off onto Exit 169 -"

I heard the doors lock with a loud click, and the seatbelts readjusted themselves so our arms were pinioned to the seat back. Dropping the knapsack and the items it carried, I pulled at the tightened belt, breath shallow as it slowly began to choke me.

"What the hell?" I heard Tiff bark weakly. "I can't - _breath_!" Her legs, to my own happiness, were free, and she quickly slammed them against the back of the driver's seat with all her might. I was about to watch Jesse's face fly into the steering wheel, but instead, I gaped at the fact that he just - disappeared. Flickered out of existence. Gone.

No driver? What was going on? Were we going to crash? What was this? "Oh my God!" I shrieked, pulling more frantically before another belt wrapped instead around my head, silencing my speech, and my thought process interrupted by a bellowing voice that was emitted from the speakers.

"_Where is the Shard_?"

The belt loosened a tad, allowing me to inhale sharply, as I writhed uncomfortably and spat, "The necklace? What does it matter to you?" I was near the point of trembling, but blatantly refused, looking to my left to see Tiffany struggling.

"Insolent girl," the car growled. "Do you want your friend to die, or will you tell me? You reek of its scent, and I know you have handled it."

Tiffany shook her head, and I couldn't tell if that was a '_Yes! Tell him!_' or a '_Hell no!_'

"I _don't know_ _where_ the damn thing went, okay? I was electrocuted one day, woke up two days later and it was gone!" I shouted at the nonexistent man, hoping to provide some form of discomfort.

Tiffany looked pained as the belt tightened, obviously on the verge of crying.

"I swear! Please! I'll do anything to get it, but don't you _fucking dare_ hurt her!" I rasped hoarsely right before the belt tightened around my face to silence me again. I usually leaned towards not swearing as heavily as Tiffany, but if you were stuck in that position, wouldn't you break your chains, too?

Tiffany slumped, and I could hear her breathing heavily, frozen and trembling where she sat, judging by the vibrations in the seat.

"I have a deal, _girl_: I will allow you - and your _friend_ - to live, so long as you help me retrieve the Shard. I do not usually offer up so nicely, so you place nice, or you die." When I nodded, the seat relaxed a bit, and the seatbelts loosened. "Is that a yes?"

"_Yes, sir,_" I managed, blinking widened eyes cautiously.

Was this some kind of a joke? Why was everyone after that necklace? Where was the necklace? Who was this guy?

I was so confused.

I knew one thing for sure - life as I knew it - was _gone_.

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

_I'm not overjoyed with how the first part and the ending came out, and I may touch it up a bit later, but for now…  
After reading AHR's review more closely, I reconsidered the plans I had for the next few chapters, and reiterated the details a tad more colorfully. The true action probably won't come for one to two more chapters or so, since I now feel I have a solid base the build on - apologies.  
Since I really like to know, if this chapter seems better, or worse, than the first, please notify me and all assess what I did right, or wrong. (Too cheesy? Good / bad grammar? Etcetera.) Is there something you want to see in the story? Does something seem to generic or hard to read? Is some just illogical? I want to implement the suggestions and advice given, putting thought on it, and making the story more acceptable by those terms and standards. (In other words, I want to hook and entertain readers, not push them, along with their advice, away.) Other than that, if you have any questions, comments, reviews, etcetera, don't be afraid to post 'em. I don't bite. ~  
Thank you so much to the people who reviewed, favorited, and followed the story thus far! I cannot stress how much I appreciate it!_

_**~TexTau**_


	3. Chapter Two - My Way, or the Highway

**Author's Notes:**

_A sincere thank-you to __**Waterfront**__, __**Stormin' Hudson**__, __**A Humble Reader**__ / __**Mein Benutzername**__, __**KeepingThemAtBay**__, __**BrokenScarlet**__, __**I'mSufferingOfCerealBoredom**__, __**Skyress98**__, __**TheGhost129**__, __**HensonMakenzie**__, __**TFandAnimeFan**__, __**PhotogMyLuv92**__, __**SoullessSky**__, __**Swiftpaw2012**__, __**Whitelilly**__**Prime**__, __**Swimfeared**__, __**Watergirl56**__, __**AnswerTheCall**__, and a lovely __**guest**__ for the reviews, follows, favorites, encouragement, practical advice, and feedback thus far. It is very appreciated, especially since I am a new writer! It promotes much incentive to continue writing, and I am very grateful for those who have followed me into this little journey so far with so much positive reception._

_Apologies, folks, for the late post._ / hangs head shamefully /_ I was stirring up ways to edit or rewrite the other two chapters, and attempting to figure out how to compose this one in a logical manner, whilst preoccupied with the MLA research paper and semester finals, not to mention driving around Bothell trying to deliver girls to each of their designated parties and spending a week at a hotel. Hectic, but fun. I had some time to write during my stay, so I'm not too worried about the length of this chapter. Apologies if it's too short, I've been scrambling lately. I'll upload two chapters next week if the best comes around, however, as next week marks the beginning of winter break. _

_On another note, I was listening to upbeat music when I was writing this, so I apologize if the mood is unbalanced or something of the likes in the beginning. Add upbeat music to Writer's Block, and you've got a paranoid, nocturnal author on caffeine._

_Hope you enjoy!_

* * *

**EDIT: **  
_For future reference, __**ten credits**__ would be the equivalent of an __**American dollar**__. Just so the prices don't seem insane - that's just how we deal with it around here._

* * *

**Track List:**** ( Just for kicks. ) ( In Order )**  
1. Pendulum - Comprachicos  
2. Chasing Shadows - The End ( Decepticons! Bootleg Edit )  
3. Meta - Starscream  
4. Nero - My Eyes  
5. Atmozfears - Starscream  
6. Blokhe4d - Shithouse Kicks  
7. Skrillex - Kill Everybody  
8. J3N0CID3 - KillStep  
9. Singularity - Nanox  
10. CellDweller - The End  
11. Maroon 5 - One More Night  
12. Jack Wall - Suicide Mission  
13. 009 Sound System - Number Two  
14. Pitbull feat T-Pain - Hey Baby

_… I wrote the chapter over the span of several days, so that should explain the amount of music played, pfft._

* * *

**Disclaimer:**  
_I do claim title to my own original characters (OC's), which are only to be reproduced under written confirmation, unless I state otherwise._

_I do not own Transformers, any of its sub-products, characters, plots, or any other feature, and have written this only to induce enjoyment for readers and writers alike, as well as progressive utilization and improvement of story-composition skills._

**Legend:**  
"Normal"  
_Thoughts_  
_"Phone"_  
**_"Cybertronian [ Vocal ]"_**  
**{ Communications Link }**  
**Text Message / Citation / Lyrics**  
**( POV / Scene Change / Location )  
( ****Flash-Back**** )**

* * *

**_Chapter II - My Way, or the Highway_**

* * *

**( Normal POV )  
( Unspecified Location )**

_"I've detected another radiation signature, ma'am,"_ a voice blared over the intercoms, interrupting the peaceful silence that a young woman was indulging herself in.

"Can you trace its origin?" the lady snapped back, eyeing her coffee cup ruefully.

_"It will take time -"_

"Get it done." The short, blonde woman had rather thick eyebrows for her stature, and wore a blue denim skirt-and-blouse combo that would rustle even the happiest gorilla's jimmies. In short, she had a rather bland taste, one she acknowledged herself but paid no heed.

_"Yes, ma'am!"_ The speakers hitched to a crackling halt, letting the gal slump back into her chair to stare back at her coffee cup once more.

"We cannot afford to let another one escape our grasp," she muttered to herself, reaching out and stirring the drink with her pencil absentmindedly. "N.B.E. Five is contained, and progress is drifting slow…" Blue eyes looked up at the clock hanging over the doorway. "… too slow." The chair was shoved back with a squeal in protest as it rode the dirtied floor, the stout female grabbing her things and exiting the room quickly.

* * *

**( Normal POV )  
( Deep Space )**

* * *

**{ The girlie has the Shard, you just ain't lookin' hard enough, Barricade. Dissect her or something, don't just sit around waitin' for Primus to smite ya. }** A familiar voice, the RC truck, brought life to the communications channel, rousing a few Decepticons from their activities. **{ There are two other Shards to go after - Barricade's dealin' with the girlies. }**

The communications links were completely silent for a few moments, before a low growl filled the gap. **{ Soundwave acknowledges: affirmative. Retrieve the Shard from the boy. }**

**{ You plan on ****_leaving_**** me with the ****_two females_****? }** Another voice intervened with a snarl, allegedly Barricade.

The line was silent for a moment, before the second speaker started, almost musingly; **{ Affirmative. }**

**{ Surely you jest. }** Barricade muttered ungratefully. **{ I'm en route to Scalpel's location - he can handle the rest. }** With that conclusion, his end of the communications link crackled out.

**{ Seems easy enough. Wheelie out. }**

The silence left the satellite-inhabiting figure to ponder the situation, his processor clouded with multiple choices toward the objects of interest he was designated to acquire. Within nanoseconds, he disconnected from the satellite and ejected a small pod into Earth's atmosphere, watching it whilst drifting back into orbit.

* * *

**( Alex POV )  
( En Route to Los Angeles )**

* * *

I was nearly asleep, thoughts shoved outside myself, before a bold Tiffany dared to inquire.

"Are we _there_ yet?"

The seat twitched slightly, and I frowned, popping open an eye to see the amused girl grinning like a kid on Christmas morning.

"_No_," came Jesse's irritated reply, and I could just see the white on his knuckles from gripping the steering wheel. After the little deal from the day before, he hadn't been too hostile, and I have no problem with that, but his mood swings - good Lord - like a girl with PMS. But I can't say I blame him... The world stops for no-one when it's running from Tiffany.

"Okay, how about now?"

I didn't know what it was with her and the whole serious dilemma, but she never did grasp the reality of the situation. She was either really bold and all-knowing, or just an idiot with no idea what she was about to do. Pissing off a magical car was not on my bucket list.

"I only require the one with the most amount of radiation. If you continue to push my patience, I will reconsider my word about keeping both of you fully _operational_."

I stretched out slightly, yawning, before turning over to face the scowling Jesse. "Morning, _Sunshine_," I added briefly, receiving nothing less than a silent stare from the rear-view mirror.

"How close are we?" Tiffany pressed curtly, shifting in the belt's tight grasp rather uncomfortably. "I'm serious, I'm getting cramps."

"You'd best pull over, unless you want her insides all over your nice leather," I clipped, biting my lip to hitch the laughter rising in my throat from the fact he swerved into the oncoming lane and crossed over to the nearest exit. His door opened, and Tiffany hobbled out, falling to hug the ground cinematically.

The officer's scowl lightened into a mere frown, both he and I turning away as her breakfast met the light, undigested, once more. I could've sworn I heard him mutter, "Disgusting." Grumbling, he shifted in his seat, waiting patiently as the relieved girl clambered back into the vehicle with her stomach intact.

"Much better." I felt something nudge my hand, and saw her cellphone, snatching it as covertly as possible and opening it curiously.

**;) Got a plan?**

I blinked, raising a brow and casting the other teenager a curious glance before tapping away at the tiny keys.

**What?**

The moment she snatched it back, the officer was well aware of our little escapade, the living seatbelt sliding forward to grab the cellphone defiantly. "Do not use your cellular devices," Jesse growled, outstretching his palm to retrieve the cellphone from the seatbelt almost flawlessly.

I was starting to believe the rumors about transforming cars. This couldn't be happening.

"I need to go to the bathroom," I clipped sharply, crossing my legs in an elaborate show of emphasis. "Like, _now_."

"_Do not_ relieve yourself on _my_ seats," he replied stonily, tone hitched in obvious frustration.

"Then find a freaking bathroom, please. You sound like my parents," I snipped back, tapping along the car door and feeling the seats squirm at the action.

"Don't do that," he strained, causing me to freeze and elaborate what exactly I was doing. Were robots ticklish? I could use this to my advantage. Glancing over to Tiffany, she raised a brow, keeping her hands settled in her lap patiently whilst I had my right hand hovering just beside the window.

If only I could grab the damn steering wheel - yes, yes that would do. It was then the thought of bringing a switchblade sounded rather appealingly, whereas that Sam guy objected to it.

When I left his reply unheeded, scratching the rubber to test, he growled in such a way that would scare even the mightiest of beasts - or confuse the hell out of them; it sounded like a bad attempt at snipping to hide muffled laughter. My hand whipped away from the door as the seatbelt snapped at it, and I quickly grabbed a hold of the nearest part I could find and yanked, keeping a foot out to balance the force.

I suddenly didn't need to use the bathroom anymore; this was a highway. If we could get out and run, so be it.

Tiffany caught on promptly, grabbing her seatbelt and locking her foot in the middle before kicking forward to smack the driver's seat. As soon as the guy in the front disappeared, I confirmed what I was seeing by sidling forward, stomping on the seatbelt to hold it to the floor and reaching out to grab the steering wheel.

"I will sedate you if you do not conform, girl," the speakers snarled, but I paid no heed, grabbing the steering wheel and pulling as though my life depended on it, watching the road closely as we swerved into the exit and scathed the edge of the barriers keeping us from falling off the road. The driver's belt wrapped around my torso, tugging forcefully, but gentle enough as though not to break my bones.

Once Tiffany had her seatbelt pinned to the floor, she leaned beneath me and hauled herself into the front passenger seat - much roomier than the back - grabbing the seatbelt there and slamming it against the dashboard.

The only problem with her brilliant plan is that her former seatbelt was loose, and I was already braced against the wheel by the time it grabbed my ankle and pulled. My grip was not lost, but my footing was, allowing all three free seatbelts to try and pry me off the steering wheel, as we were losing a lot of paint - and drawing a lot of attention. Just the thing.

**"Skesthna klic kriztra?"** the speakers droned, warbled hisses forming the foreign vernacular I had heard spoken in one of the videos. Damn that necklace - damn it all.

**"Zeeakto,"** a different voice replied stonily, tone hitched and syllables gravelly as they were spat.

The seatbelt Tiffany was holding suddenly whipped forward with the loose end, subsequently slamming the girl's forehead against the dashboard before she slumped completely. Struggle over, the living piece of vehicle pushed her into place in the seat, before conforming to the newest issue.

My knuckles were white from grabbing the wheel, and I jerked the car the best I could, before feeling a hot sensation run over my left wrist, a pop resonating through my senses. Sheering pain. The arm suddenly went limp, the force behind me succeeding in dragging me off of the wheel and onto the floor. Chin smacking the seat on the way down, I strained to keep my fight on, feeling practically useless in terms of success with a limp arm. "Get off me!" Throwing my force forward and rolling, I managed to snag one of three said belts, making sure it couldn't reach my wrist as I sunk my teeth into the polyester while clinging to it like my life depended on it.

The car jerked and swerved, honks filling the air all around; nothing was louder than my heart beat. Blood pounded through my ears as I was thrown against the back of the passenger seat, pivoting and slamming my feet against the glass. Nothing. By this time, I had released my bite on the belt, Jesse's commands falling on deft ears as I reared to try again. The seat belt hampered my kick, but it was still enough to create a small crack in the window, which sent the living machine into a fit. Before I could even process what was happening, Tiffany and I were airborne, the pavement rising to slap my limp frame with a sickening force.

Tiffany was wide awake by the time she hit the ground, eyes widened and a hand clutching her leg. "Alex!" Damn, she was panicking - I couldn't blame her though, I was on the verge myself. "I can't move my leg!"

A shadow hit the ground, an alien noise filling the air as the car we had just been sitting in shifted into a hulking humanoid. The rumors were true.

"Slagging fleshling, conform!" it growled, outstretching a massive hand in my direction. Hauling myself to my feet tenuously, I threw myself forward, shoulder hitting the concrete and body practically collapsing on itself as I rolled, using the momentum to finish sliding the few feet to Tiffany's side.

"Get up, get up - get up!" I yelled repeatedly, feeling like a broken record as I grabbed her arm and pulled her to her feet.

I'll give 'Jesse' credit: he - err, it - was surprisingly nimble for a massive robot. Two giant, metal hands reached to cup themselves around the two of us, eliciting a shriek from the blonde as she staggered back in hopes of avoiding the impending doom. Shoving the girl forward, and feeling quite guilty in the process, I clung to a clawed talon, overlapping my fingers and praying it didn't squish me like a bug.

"_Disgusting_!" it spat, hoisting its hand to optic-level as though not knowing what to do with me. My heart cut out the rest of his rant, pounding viscously as his free hand was drawn forward to pry me off. The moment metal touched flesh, however, I felt a surge of unprecedented force, chest tightening and a flash of tunnel-vision clouding my thought process.

I blinked, suddenly feeling immobilized with my eyes locked on the sky. The massive giant that was once held me captive froze up and crashed to the side, twitching visibly. What happened? Was I paralyzed? Had it dropped me? Had it been shot?

"Alex!" The sounds rushed back in, and I turned my head weakly, spotting Tiffany as she scrabbled across the broken pavement towards me. "Alex, Alex are you alright?"

"I should be the one asking you that," I breathed, panting as the feeling returned to my limbs, allowing me to reach up and pull the girl into a half-hug, grinding my teeth with a wince at the contact to my allegedly snapped wrist. "I'm - okay. How about your leg?"

"We've got help coming," she replied quickly, gaze resorting to glowering at the many people who had stopped their activities to gather around the scene. No-one wanted to step forward, which I found surprising.

"Pathetic human; you know not the rarity of that which you carry," the thundering voice of the Saleen rasped, causing the two of us, and most of the bystanders, to pivot so they were facing the speaker. He was on his flank, unmoving, crimson red optics scrutinizing my frame carefully before locking with my eyes.

I was frozen in fear, a chill raking up my spine with a shudder. "Enlighten me, if you care so much." It was a stupid move, but I could have cared less, on my side clutching just below my broken wrist with a bloody face marked with pain.

"The Shard - the Shard of the AllSpark; a fragment of the very object that gave life to our race." Optics never leaving my eyes - no matter how hard I wanted to break the gaze. "You act as though it is a mere _accessory_," his warbled voice crackled, threateningly cold. "You will regret your decisions the day the Fallen returns, human - very day your deity's _judgement_ falls upon your _entire race_."

His optics slowly lost their color, dropping into a deep grey, his helm hitting the ground with a loud thud, limbs going limp.

I could hardly believe this. All the rumors were true - everything relayed to me countless times, and yet, I ignored it. I ignored all the advice, all the things told to me by both the wise and the foolish - and even etched in the God-forsaken videos I had stolen from a dinky blog.

It was impossible - but right there, on the ground, collapsed just feet from my location. I was quivering by this time, laying my head down and squeezing my eyes shut, exhaling sharply as I tried to block the world out desperately.

I paid no heed to the hands laid on my side and the voices around me, feeling an eye tugged open gently and a light shining through the inky blackness. I acknowledged a small prick in my arm, accepting the warm darkness as a peace treaty as it flooded my vision.

Symbols flashed before my eyes faster than I could separate, synthetic voices whispering in foreign vernaculars and drowning out the rest of my thoughts.

* * *

**( Normal POV )  
( Unspecified Location )**

* * *

"Ma'am, we have pinpointed their location. They're moving - fast," a man announced quickly, straightening his posture and handing over a clipboard and vanilla folder.

The stout woman snatched the files, holding the clipboard beneath one arm and sorting through paper with her free hands and pausing when she reached the page announcing the source of radiation. "So we were right, then?"

"Yes, ma'am. It is a piece of the AllSpark."

"Get Brooklyn and his team out there covertly, or so help me, the government will have our hides," she muttered, taking the files and branching away from the man. "Keep tight radio chatter - those machines are hot on our asses, not to mention close to our current location.

"Yes, ma'am!" Footsteps resonated throughout the hall before fading completely. The woman was left to the files, entering her room and dropping the vanilla folder and clipboard on the desk with a frustrated sigh.

The action spilled all the papers out onto the oak wood, some of them pictures of the alleged radiated. This caught her attention, and she leaned over, picking up the top photo and scrutinizing it closely; it had been taken a mere half an hour ago. It was marked with a weird scan, showing the different levels of contamination and radiation on the subjects. There was no driver, which proved her suspicions - but there were two girls. A girl that was hardly marked, and the other - the other was highly intoxicated with it. It wasn't surprising to see the car filling out the bill, as that was to be expected, but for the humans -

The blonde drew her cellphone from her pocket, searching through her speed-dial for the number associated with the person she wanted to contact - Foster. Cade Foster was just the man she needed. Cade was a man of high quality; when he put himself to the task, he would complete it, especially if it involved a few-hundred-thousand credits.

* * *

**( Normal POV )  
( Tranquility, Nevada )**

* * *

A middle-aged man, no younger than thirty and no older than forty, was sprawled out over a cushy, leather couch, allegedly taking a nap; the reason being, as soon as his cellphone vibrated, he jerked up and reached back to grab it, scowling and lifting it to his ear warily.

"Hello?"

_"Cade, I have a lead on the radiation signature."_

"Amanda, not now - we've got two other signatures under control."

_"'Under control' my ass, this radiation signature is going to spark out if we don't grab it now,"_ the female clipped angrily.

"I don't -"

_"A human - a teenage girl - is carrying about a tenth of the AllSpark's radiation. If we let this one escape, the girl dies, and no-one gets the goods. So many new open doors... This could be our last chance to resolve what the old -"_

"Amanda, don't you think they'll already have sent in the Autobots? I'm not going to lose another squadron. They are good men, and to just waste them like so is absolutely -"

_"Logical - we are ahead of N.E.S.T. I've already sent Brooklyn and his team in, so don't try to talk me out of it,"_ she mumbled, rolling her eyes on her end of the phone. _"You're the best we've got. You were there when they attacked, and I feel that you'd be a perfect role model for the newer recruits who still think comparing their dick sizes is awesome."_

The older man snorted, staring at the ceiling. "Remember the good ol' days, before the aliens attacked?"

_"I try not to,"_ the gal exhaled sharply, grinding her jaw slightly. _"Can you help, or not? I'm short on men, so you -"_

"_We_. _We_ are short on men - men you've squandered like _ammunition_ on the field. Once you pull yourself together, I'll consider working with you again," Cade protested with a growl. "I'm settled - I have a family, and no worries in the world other than taxes and bills. I don't care about the aliens, I want nothing to do with them, so as long as our world is completely stabilized."

_"I'll pay you as much as you want, Cade, but we really -"_

"No." The man furrowed his brows, waiting in the phone's silent resonation. Unbeknownst to him, a small, red blur was approaching from behind the couch, suddenly wrapping its arms around his neck and hauling himself unsteadily upon the couch.

"Hey little guy. Where's Mommy?" 'Cade inquired cheerily. Drawing the phone to his face, he hissed, "_If you manage to catch this girl, I'll consider joining you. The Autobots will likely tear your team apart before you reach her._" Hanging up, he looked to the young toddler perched on the top of the couch.

"Mommy owsi'e," the kid replied replied, preoccupied with his balance. "Au'obaw's. Wa'w!" the child proclaimed, tackling his father once again.

"No, Decepticons go '_roar_,'" Cade corrected, giving his son a playful prod to the nose, to which the boy scrunched up his features with a big grin. "Autobots are good. They saved Gavin and Daddy, and Mommy and Sissy."

"Sissy!" the toddler, allegedly Gavin, proclaimed happily, causing the older male to wince visibly.

"Sissy is on a vacation." _Yeah, and how long will that excuse last..?_

Cade leaned back, grabbing his son by his waist and hauling him gently onto his lap, tickling him. "But she'll be back soon," he reassured his giggling son. _I hope._

* * *

**Author's Notes:**

_If you have any problems with my plot or anything else thus far, don't be afraid to kick my butt and tell me. I'm all out for suggestions, advice, and constructive criticism. Chapter too short? Too much action? Plot progressing too fast? Spot any typos? Characters too bold or prevailing thus far? Got any ideas? Don't be afraid to shove 'em in, I'm all up for ideas._

_I've received positive reviews on the first and second chapters, but the first chapter defined the characters more. I'd like to see if I'm still on the positive track, is all - I want my characters and plot to seem more original than Mary-Sue and overly cliché. _

_Ehh, I'm unsure how well I did with the canon-converse. However silent I tend to be in reality, I subsequently end up creating out-of-character canons if I'm having too much fun. Pff, did I do okay..?_

_Suggestions, comments, questions, advice, constructive criticism - it's all greatly appreciated! If you feel the story is worthy, feel free to pop in a review. I don't bite. ~_

_Thanks again! _

_Love you peeps,_

_**~TexTau**_


	4. Author's Note ( Brief Intermission )

**Author's Notes:**

_Ugh, please forgive me for this 'false alarm' of sorts. However, I have some things I need to smack down a bit._

_First off, congratulations to those who have followed me on this merry adventure thus far! You have managed to pull the wild TexTau from her diluted silence. I mean this with all seriousness, actually. I don't talk much in real life, but on the internet, no-one knows who you are. You've managed to drag the antisocial authoress from her hole._

_Second, a Primus-sized hug and thank-you to those who have tailed along, provided advice and support, or simply offered much encouragement. Every review, favorite, and follow provides much incentive to continue, and is greatly appreciated!_

_Thirdly - here comes the storm - I sidled off my original track. Do you ever have one of those moments when you get bit by a rabid plot-bunny in the middle of something completely irrelevant, and must write it down? Yes, that is what happened to me. I was doing my essays, and then I got a muse, that I thought would prove interesting at first, and easy to maneuver around to get back on the original plot. But now - heh - it's not looking so good now that it's on the paper._

_All in all, I am still continuing, however, I want to rewrite the first few chapters while I still have the chance. I'm keeping the way the beginning was formatted - but Barricade kidnapping the girls is not very congruent with the summary, now, is it?_

_I have all my notes written out ( and will keep to them this time, __Primus forbid__ it anyway else ) and will go back to rewrite the few things misplaced. I feel it was a wee bit rushed._

**Things that are changing: **  
- The source of introduction.  
- The kidnapping.  
- The anatomical references. ( I realize I didn't describe the girls' physical attributes very well. )  
- 'The Shard.' ( Not originally placed within the text, and needs to be diluted. I have a plan. )  
- Some minor errors.

**Things that are staying the same:**  
- The characters. ( Traits, personalities, etcetera. )  
- The location. ( I was considering changing the location to something more logical, but hey, I have an idea for this, too. )  
- The basic plot skeleton. ( Duh. What'd be the point of redoing the whole slaggin' story? )

**Improvements:**  
- Longer chapters. ( More of each subject. )  
- More fleshed-out development and personalities.  
- A train of plot.  
- Minor subplots that stay connected.  
- More fixated idea of where I want this story to go. ( I had a good idea before, but now I have finalized all these ideas and conjoined them. )  
- Minor error fixes.

_So, I do have a few questions as well, that'd I'd like at least five ( no, not asking for reviews, I just really need a varied amount of answers, or I'll get nowhere with my thought process ) or so answers on to help me decide where I want to go next with my actions. PM me or leave a comment, I don't mind either way, I just really want to know:_

*** How am I doing? **  
( I've received positive feedback on my style, which I take in gratefully! However: how am I doing, otherwise? I realize sometimes the sections in the chapters are a dead doorbell ringer to what's going on next, and I'm going back and changing that, but what do you think of the progression so far? )

*** How could I improve?**  
( A shout-out to _A Humble Reader_ for the advice given! I've been analyzing it as I write, and pray I didn't fail too horribly, but it has proven extraordinarily fun and useful. Thank you so much! )

*** Is there something that could be changed / saved not listed above? **  
( Or something that should stay that I am changing. )

*** Is the POV too cliquey? **  
( Does it change around too much, etcetera. )

*** Are the characters' personalities, both canon and OC, staying on track? **  
( Sometimes I'm really bad with the canon personalities. I'm more confident with the OC personalities - ran them all through at least five Mary-Sue tests and they came out clean, and I intend to stick with that. But yeah, staying on track, with the writing displayed in the previous chapters - yes? No? )

*** What would you like to see happen / develop over the course of the story? **  
( Between characters. Because I've had requests on both basic Guardian / Charge relationships, and then a full-blown Mech / OC. I've been weighing both back and forth, and I'm leaning more towards an actual ship, but I'd have to shape up my writing a bit before that could happen logically. Thoughts? )

*** Which Autobots / Decepticons / Humans would you like to see later on?**  
( Because I'd love to know. What fun is a story centered on just three or so canon characters? Maybe it's just me, I dunno, but yeah - just curious. )

*** Which non-canon / canon pairings would you like to see later - like, long-ways-away later - over the progression of the story? Or none at all? For example, Sam / Mikaela, Optimus / Elita-One, and Ironhide / Chromia. **  
( Of course, the reason I say 'long-ways-away' is because I'm more of a "Let's blow shit up!" kind of a chick, as opposed to romance. I may, or even may not, do any pairings at all, as this is my first fan-fiction. However, if my writing shapes up and matures a bit, it's a possibility. Dunno yet. )

_Hopefully I didn't scare anyone away.  
/ _Pauses and waits for sudden reaction, receiving none._ /  
That's good, very good. No one ran out screaming. Nice crowd. If anything, you can smack me over the head, but please don't kill me._

_For future reference, I'll erase this note and replace it with the rewritten text after I've decided on everything from this point on. Cross my heart and hope to fly, I will not make the same mistake twice. If I do, Primus smite me. Please bear with me just a little longer, argh._

_It's just, with the anti-progress fillers I created with the damned 'muse bunnies,' I have come to a dead-end. Time to back up the train and find the right door. Just know: if I don't go back and change a few things, this muse is gonna crash. I'm pretty cornered right now, because it's derailed from my original plan. I really do apologize, eek._

_Thank you so much for everything, guys! Your patience, advice, encouragement, and positive feedback are very rejuvenating. Hopefully you can put up with my hell-bent errors for just a few more days, of which I hope to have much resolved by then. I've already begun to rewrite, and the prologue is longer than it was before._

_**Love you all, and hope to hear back from you all soon!**_

_**~ TexTau**_


End file.
